Chapter 66
Seriniel seemed lost in thought for a moment, then her expression darkened slightly. She then turned to Vain and spoke, lips parting.
“Vain, have you heard any strange rumors lately?”
“What kind of rumors, Miss?”
Vain’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“I mean, for example… rumors about Duke Lexion or about Rosenvesters.”
What kind of talk is this? Vain couldn’t understand.
“Duke Lexion must have evidence against Belles’s rebellion.”
“And?”
“And the Emperor himself was planning to use Duke Lexion to eliminate troublesome nobles. He must be aware of the situation.”
“….”
“What I mean is… Belles has no justification now. But once military authority is transferred, everything will end.”
From Belles’s perspective, it would indeed be the end. No matter how many mercenaries he gathered, it was clear that the difference between Lexion, who already had soldiers, and gaining military authority, was significant.
And even if he fled the capital with an excuse, he wouldn’t escape. Leaving the Carteia Empire would be no different. From that moment on, their status would change from nobles to fugitives and traitors.
So Belles would try to prevent military authority from falling into Lexion’s hands by any means necessary.
“When the opponent’s logic is flawless, and there’s no gap in that logic… Do you know the only way to break it down, Vain?”
“Miss…?”
“Attacking the opponent themselves.”
Vanin remained silent for a moment. At some point, his expression began to harden, much like Seriniel’s.
And after a considerable amount of time passed, Vain spoke again, as if hoping such a thing wouldn’t happen.
“But Duke Lexion has nothing to hide, does he? Besides, the Emperor also trusts the Duke…”
“That may be so… but there’s one thing. Duke Lexion’s weakness.”
Seriniel spoke with a troubled expression.
“…That the Duke is not the heir of Rosenvester.”
Even if he was the son of a concubine, if Lexion had been the only child of this generation, it wouldn’t have been a big deal.
But unfortunately, didn’t Lexion have a half-brother?
“But isn’t the eldest son of Rosenvester already dead?”
Seriniel knew. She had known this story even before she became involved with Lexion.
The problem was that he hadn’t died of natural causes… he had been murdered.
“If Belles gathers nobles who harbor ill feelings towards Duke Lexion and creates a faction in that way…”
It was certain that they would create a very unfavorable public opinion for Lexion.
As the situation escalated…
“…At that time, we don’t know what stance the Emperor will take.”
He was already an Emperor with weak authority. The Emperor had ordered Lexion to eliminate the nobles to save himself.
But if the voices opposing Lexion grew louder and their power increased…
At that time, he couldn’t easily support Lexion. If he continued to turn a blind eye and refused to yield until the end, there might even be a civil war.
And if that happened, Seriniel’s weakness would become Lexion’s.
If it hadn’t been for me in the first place, Lexion wouldn’t have been involved in such power struggles.
“But isn’t Belles in the same position? Duke Lexion… just as Belles treated the Viscount and Viscountess…”
“That crystal…”
Seriniel murmured.
“Are you talking about what we saw in the basement?”
“…Yes.”
That crystal was necessary.
She could still vividly recall the contents of the crystal.
In the current situation, the crystal would be useful to Seriniel in many ways.
Firstly, even though the Emperor knew everything, if she turned away from Lexion, his only weakness would be me. Belles would accuse him of gathering nobles with me, using investments in mines, which were earned through business, as funds for rebellion.
Then Lexion would remain as vulnerable as before. He couldn’t easily attack Belles as he did with the pretext of rebellion. Since Seriniel would be implicated.
And the crystal also contained Belles’s admission of killing Seriniel’s parents.
Although they were of the same noble lineage, murder was a serious crime. And that too, was immediately punishable by death. And at the same time, it would become another pretext for attacking Belles.
So if she could get her hands on the crystal, it would be helpful in many ways.
“Belles is a very suspicious person.”
“That’s probably correct, Miss. There have been many visitors to the estate, but Belles has never confided in them about his thoughts or future plans.”
After the death of the Viscount and Viscountess, and Seriniel’s marriage to Calian, Vain, left alone in the mansion, tirelessly tried to understand the situation. He observed and eavesdropped on all the visitors, but Belles simply listened to their conversations without revealing anything about himself or his plans.
Therefore, even though Vain had suspicions that he might be preparing for rebellion, he couldn’t casually inform Seriniel about it.
“He would just spend the whole day in the study once the guests left. Besides, if he were the type of person easily trusted, he wouldn’t have used Calian Helcar the way he did.”
“He would have hidden it in a place only he knew about. And…”
Seriniel murmured softly.
“Who do you think Belles would least want to discover the existence of that crystal, Vain?”
“Me?”
“Yes…”
That would be you, Vain answered.
Seriniel’s mind raced.
The crystal…
Somewhere other than the bank, the vault, or the Verdellete estate.
And also, according to Belles’s thoughts, a place that Seriniel would never find or visit.
“Vain, can you compile a list of the Verdellete estate properties?”
Seriniel asked Vaim.
“And… Belles disposed of the Eren estate, right? It hasn’t been long since I visited the Helcar estate.”
The Eren estate. It was the maternal family of Seriniel.
Her maternal grandfather had died when Seriniel was young, so the Eren estate had been inherited by Seriniel’s mother and then became part of the Verdellete estate’s property.
So, it was now Belles’s property.
“Yes. I heard that the estate was completely demolished.”
“As far as I remember, the Eren estate had several properties. My mother and father used to spend time there together when I was still in my mother’s womb. I can’t remember, but my mother said she had been there even when I was very young.”
All of that would have fallen into Belles’s hands. The only thing he allowed Seriniel was the worthless mine.
“Although it’s now owned by Belles, it shouldn’t be too difficult to find out. I’ll organize and let you know as soon as possible.”
“Thank you, Vain.”
Seriniel smiled faintly.
“And… did Duke Lexion mention when he would return?”
“Since he has no other business today, he said he would return directly from the palace.”
…I see.
Seriniel’s cheeks flushed slightly. Even though she had only briefly mentioned Lexion, Seriniel seemed a little embarrassed.
Vain couldn’t recall seeing such a sight even when she met with Calian Helcar. Unconsciously, Vain smiled tenderly, thinking that maybe that was Seriniel’s true self. It was something that naturally emerged when someone was held dear.
Vain’s worries about Seriniel’s meeting with Lexion had disappeared completely.
And then…
It was the moment when Seriniel fidgeted with her hands, and Vain, secretly smiling at her, was unaware.
“That, madam…”
Kina, holding a letter, appeared with a serious expression.
“…What’s that, Kina?”
Did it come from Duke Lexion? Seriniel’s eyes widened.
“I’ll put it in the study. Since he’ll be back soon anyway…”
“I… Um, the recipient’s name… is a bit…”
“Hm?”
Kina cautiously handed over the letter, and Seriniel examined it.
“…From Rosenvester’s…”
“…”
“Parasite.”
Reading the sentence written in the letter, Seriniel stiffened instantly.
